What, Exactly, Is A Mobile Payment?

While competing interests and emerging technologies have us waiting to replace our wallets with our phones, let's define terms.

The promise payments initiated without swiping a card, handing over cash or writing a check is the essence of the oft-discussed topic of the "mobile wallet."

But the concept frozen somewhere between science fiction and reality, with dozens of traditional vendors, networks and banks competing with startups to be the first to get it right and ultimately spur widespread adoption. So why we wait, let's define terms.